Jordan, the Next Generation

In a continuing series on UK celebrities whose fame mystifies almost everyone in America except your bizarrely Anglophic Canadian GalleyCat, now I bring you book deal news about Kerry Katona, former lead singer of Atomic Kitten (and former wife of former Westlife singer Bryan McFadden, infamous for his remark that he thought having a kid was like “getting a dog.” And yes, that’s a whole lot of formers.) It seems that Katona will be following in Jordan’s footsteps, having inked a three book deal with Ebury for three novels which the publisher is describing as a blend of “Footballers’ Wives” and “Shameless”.

Based on the Bookseller’s report, it’s easy to see why that blend might apply: Katona’s first effort, TOUGH LOVE, features Leanne Crompton, a successful glamor model who finds out the hard way who her friends really are when her career grinds to a halt and she has to leave London and head home with her daughter. The book will hit stores in October accompanied by the almost ho-hum “massive advertising campaign.” As for Katona’s remarks in the announcement where she describes the “brilliant time” she had coming up with the storylines and characters for these new books, it’s only a matter of time before the ghost writer on the project is known. Hell, maybe the ghost worked on Jordan’s “novels”, too…